AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)

If you are approached by clients or other advisors who think it makes sense to move money from an IRA to a life insurance policy, take a look before you throw out the idea. In this episode of the PFP Section podcast, Bob Keebler, CPA/PFS, shares situations and considerations where this strategy may be prudent. He discusses: Why it works best for clients with a federal and state estate tax Other fa...

In this special episode of Deeper CPA Financial Planner Connections, Dr. Haesun Moon is back by popular demand. In her fist podcast, she described her simple coaching model that can be used to have more effective conversations with clients and anyone you care about in your life. In this episode of the PFP Section podcast, Lyle Benson, CPA/PFS, interviews Haesun to help you put her communication fr...

Best practices on how to view Roth conversions has shifted now that SECURE 2.0 has changed the age for required minimum distributions up to age 75 beginning in 2033. In this episode of the PFP Section podcast, Bob guides you with what to be thinking about as you make decisions with your clients this year, including: Tax brackets, outside funds to pay the tax on the conversion, and deferral have al...

Are you looking for ways to deepen relationships with next generation clients and staff? In this episode of the PFP Section podcast, AICPA PFP Standing Ovation Award recipient Akeiva Ellis, CPA/PFS, shares how she keeps her younger clients feeling cared for and important. She also shares tips on what to think about to attract talented next gen advisors to your firm. Akeiva answers the following qu...

When planning for the surviving spouse with your client's attorney, it's important to address issues while both spouses are alive to arrive at the best outcomes.  In part three of this PFP Section podcast series, Paul Hood, JD, LLM, walks you through what may occur after the first spouse dies that should be built into the estate plan. He discusses the following issues to consider: Cashflow Backup...

Susan Tillery, CPA/PFS, began her career journey in tax and eventually landed with her own fee for service financial planning firm that she owns with her husband, Tom. Their firm is designed to provide education and planning to their clients, and they team with other advisers to manage investments and do the tax compliance work. They also provide education and other resources to CPAs who want to a...

President Biden's fiscal year 2024 budget proposal includes many familiar changes that we have seen in past proposals. It's difficult to predict whether these will come to fruition though it will be important to get ahead on having conversations with your higher wealth clients so that there are no unexpected surprises. In this episode of the PFP Section podcast, Bob Keebler, CPA/PFS, covers the ma...

Note that this episode was recorded prior to the effective date of SECURE 2.0 which allows for 529 funds to be rolled into Roth IRAs in certain circumstances. Trust terminations can become complicated when beneficiaries decide to go their separate ways and break up the trust. The IRS views this transaction as a sale of the interest in the trust for cash or assets and a gain is triggered. In this e...

Guest:   Kelley Long, CPA/PFS The flexibility and advantages of Roth IRAs makes them highly desirable for planning that goes beyond retirement funding. In this episode of the PFP Section podcast, Kelley Long, CPA/PFS, discusses situations where it may make sense to use a Roth IRA, including: Getting around the psychological barrier for clients who don't want their money tied up until age 59 ½ Serv...

If you're currently working in a hybrid environment or running a business that is managing this structure, tune in to hear best practices for keeping employees engaged in this episode of the PFP Section podcast. Kelley Long, CPA/PFS, discusses 5 tips, including: · How to keep the office and remote workers connected and invigorated. · How to help employees avoid burnout. · What to consider with the...

The new spousal IRA election in SECURE 2.0 is both novel and complex. In this episode of the PFP Section podcast, Bob Keebler, CPA/PFS, walks you through the options that need to be considered when a spouse who is 7+ years younger dies first. Bob shares: The spousal IRA options in SECURE 1.0 and SECURE 2.0 How to know whether you should do a traditional rollover or make the inherited spousal IRA e...

Dirk Edwards, CPA/PFS, designed his financial planning practice to make the complex planning work the centerpiece for his clients. He brings in experts in the areas such as estate, risk management, and investments to implement the planning so that his family clients have the best specialists involved. In this episode of the PFP Section podcast, Lyle Benson, CPA/PFS, interviews Dirk to share ideas...

Family office clients have complex planning issues. It's helpful to collaborate with a team of advisors and not feel like you must have all the answers. It is often valuable to begin the engagement by having conversations about what matters most to the family and for their legacy. In this episode of the PFP Section podcast, JG Gassman, CPA/PFS, and Rick Peck have a conversation with family office...

SECURE 2.0 allows 529 plans to be rolled into Roth IRAs beginning in January 2024. To learn more about the specifics of what is allowed, Bob Keebler, CPA/PFS, interviews education expert, Ross Riskin, CPA/PFS, in this episode of the PFP Section podcast. Ross responds to the following questions. What are the primary tax benefits of 529 plans? What are the most important things to know about the new...

Guest:  Mackey McNeill, CPA/PFS In part 4 of this PFP Section podcast series, Mackey McNeill, CPA/PFS, discusses how to keep the annual plan alive through effective measuring. You can use this in your own business and for your relevant clients. Mackey describes the importance of preparing easy and effective reports with visual metrics that anyone can understand. This allows everyone on the team to...

In part 3 of this PFP Section podcast series, Mackey McNeill, CPA/PFS, shows you how to move your big ideas into an actionable framework for the coming year. You can use this in your own business and for your relevant clients.  Mackey describes how to use two resources, Grow Four Ways, and Cascading Metrics Process, that you can find in the show notes. She walks you through: How she took a client...

Many CPA financial planners give credit for the career they have created to the relationships they have built within their AICPA PFP community. To spread these stories and pearls of wisdom more broadly, we created the Deeper CPA Financial Planner Connections series in November 2021. In this episode of the PFP Section podcast, Lyle Benson, CPA/PFS, and Andrea Millar, CPA/PFS, discuss the 7 recurrin...

A lot of information is flying around on the importance of SECURE 2.0 and what this means for retirement planning. Get the bottom line of what you need to think about for your clients in this episode of the PFP Section podcast. Bob Keebler, CPA/PFS, interviews retirement expert, Ed Slott, CPA. Ed shares: His take on the bill The issue of needing to take RMDs in years 1-9 when inheriting an IRA fro...

As CPAs and financial planners, we are trained in the technical skills to help clients plan for transitions such as a business sale, retirement, divorce, or loss of a spouse. What we may not be as prepared for is the human experience that takes place over the years leading up to, during, and settling into a new way of life. The human side is messy and it's more challenging to see how it influences...

Focusing on what you need to know to serve your clients today, Bob Keebler CPA/PFS reviews the changes and their nuances as a result of the passage of SECURE 2.0.  Some of the areas highlighted in this episode of the Personal Financial Planning (PFP) podcast include: Changes in Required Beginning Dates (RBD) Upcoming changes to IRA and qualified plan catch-up contribution amounts Allowance for mat...

Haesun Moon, Ph. D., is a communication scientist who has a mission to change the world through better conversations. She has created a simple coaching model in which people participate to imagineer and perform their preferred change. Lyle Benson, CPA/PFS, interviews Haesun to understand how her approach can lead to effective financial planning conversations. They discuss: Why guiding clients towa...

PFP Executive Committee (EC) chair, Brooke Salvini, CPA/PFS, and PFS Credential Committee (CC) chair, Oscar Vives, kick off the new year in this episode of the PFP Section podcast. They answer the following questions: What are their 2023 resolutions that may inspire you? What are the objectives of the PFP EC and PFS CC and how do they support members in financial planning? What were the committee...

Brooke Salvini, CPA/PFS, started out in the CPA profession in the traditional way and eventually made her way back to an early seed that planted her desire for personal finance. In this episode of the PFP Section podcast, Lyle Benson connects with Brooke to share her story and how she made decisions along the way. Brooke answers the following questions: How did you decide to start your hourly advi...

Rising interest rates may cause bond values to go down and it may be the time to make changes to bond portfolios.  Bob Keebler CPA/PFS and Mark Fichtenbaum CPA review: Options for a bond that has a coupon that is less than market. How to avoid the wash sale rules when selling a bond. Tax implications of selling a bond at a loss. The three types of bonds and how the income from each is taxed for fe...

Mackey McNeil, CPA, PFS, shares how she took back her time in this episode of the PFP Section podcast. Guest:  Mackey McNeill, CPA/PFS Do you long for more flexibility and free time in your schedule? In part 2 of this PFP Section podcast series, Mackey McNeill, CPA/PFS, shares her process for taking back her time.  Mackey fills you in on how she went from having her hands in everything to designin...